Proving worth is top CPO priority

Eight out of 10 CPOs say their main challenges are demonstrating the impact of procurement on the firm's results and increasing awareness with top management.

Other challenges include involving the department in sourcing decisions early on and acquiring adequate human, financial and technological resources.

Yet almost half the respondents to a global survey, by BrainNet Management Consultants and software provider SAP said procurement now operates closely with other strategic departments, reporting directly to the management board and managing significantly higher budgets than five years ago.

The survey also found that, although the majority of spend is on components and raw materials, the procurement of indirect goods such as marketing and other services is rising. It claims the move into these goods is "significant proof of the fact that procurement is increasingly establishing itself as a cross-departmental, cross-sectional function".